In recent years, as next-generation energy, various fuel cell modules in which fuel cells are accommodated in storage containers and fuel cell devices in which such fuel cell modules are accommodated in exterior cases have been proposed (refer to, for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2007-59377). Fuel cells are formed so as to be capable of obtaining power by using a fuel gas (hydrogen containing gas) and an oxygen containing gas (air).
In fuel cell devices that are expected to provide next-generation energy, many of the auxiliaries such as pumps for supplying, for example, a fuel gas or an oxygen containing gas to fuel cell modules are an electrically operated type that operates using power. Therefore, for example, when, at the time of power failure of a system power supply, the operation of a fuel cell device is temporarily stopped, the fuel cell device cannot be started up until the power is restored after the temporary stoppage.
Therefore, hitherto, when a fuel cell device that is not operating is to be started up at the time of power failure of a system power supply, for example, using a large capacity storage battery, power is supplied to all auxiliaries for operation thereof, and startup is performed (refer to, for example, Patent Literatures 2, 3, and 4).
The following is a list of the aforementioned background art
PTL 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2007-59377
PTL 2: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2007-207661
PTL 3: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2008-22650
PTL 4: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2008-269908
However, in the fuel cell devices described in the aforementioned Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2007-207661 to Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2008-269908, since power is supplied to all of the auxiliaries for operation thereof, it is necessary to perform startup using a large capacity storage battery. This increases the size and cost of the fuel cell devices.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a small, inexpensive fuel cell device that is capable of being started up even if there is no power supply from a system power supply.
A fuel cell device according to the present invention includes a fuel cell that is connected to a system power supply and that generates power using a fuel gas and an oxygen containing gas, a plurality of auxiliaries used for the power generation of the fuel cell, a storage battery, an auxiliary power switching unit that switches power supplies to the respective auxiliaries from the storage battery, and a controlling device that controls the auxiliary power switching unit, wherein, when the fuel cell device that is not operating is to be started up at a time of power failure of the system power supply, the controlling device determines whether or not each of the plurality of auxiliaries is an auxiliary necessary for startup of the fuel cell or an auxiliary unnecessary for the startup and controls the auxiliary power switching unit in such a way as to supply the power from the storage battery to the auxiliary necessary for the startup.